fishpick
Platinum Member
I'm making this post just for anyone else that decides it's time to add a pair or rear remotes to their Grand L Lxx60 HSTC - this information should be universal - and was done on my L4760 HSTC specifically.
First - the 2 wholegoods part numbers you need for the valve control hardware are:
Perhaps the biggest obstacle to doing this you will hear is that you MUST remove the rear wheel to access a panel in the wheel well to get things connected. If your are flexible - you 100% DO NOT need to remove the rear wheel (which in my case is rim guarded - so at around 800# I wasn't really looking forward to that). You can get everything installed and tightened with the rear wheel on - just make your life easy and DO NOT have a rear implement on the tractor.
There's a couple of youtube videos out there at the time of this post - they do a fair job explaining how things go together - but the biggest challenge here is that the instructions are NOT step by step - they basically give you a part of the kit and some part numbers and tell you to put them together. You spend a LOT of time flipping between the steps they want you to do and the exploded diagram of the entire kit trying to figure out exactly where things go. It's all correct - but not super clear. So just go slowly.
When you are placing the o-rings in the valves and the manifold - use some grease to hold them in there. Doing this will prevent them from popping out at inopportune times.
There's also a few missed things in the diagram as well - so use common sense as you do this. For example there's a big bracket in the kit for the first valve. The instructions show one bolt holding it to the tractor and one bolt attaching the bracket to the manifold for the valves... but - the kit comes with 2 bolts for the attachment to the tractor and there are 2 holes, same for the manifold. Just put all the bolts in all the holes where it makes sense.
For me the biggest win in terms of not needing to take the wheel off was installing the manifold that brings the hydro to the valves - I worked it over and under the 2 hoses I have for the Kubota 3rd function kit from inside the cab under the seat. I did have to loosen on of the 3rd function hoses a little bit to move the hose slightly so things fit. If you don't have a 3rd function, that won't be an issue. If you are ALSO installing a Kubota 3rd function - it's not a bad idea to do this right after to you can move the hose. Once I got that positioned (being sure to no knock out an o-ring) - then I went back around behind the tractor and took the valve bodies with the lever arms that attach directly to them on the long bolts in kit 2 - and attached to the manifold. This was very tight work but very doable.
The hardest part of the entire install is when the connector rods come down from the cab to the lever on top of the valve - you need to insert a very small cotter pin / R-clip in there... you will need nimble fingers and not sausage hands if you leave the wheel on. Just take your time.
Regarding the connector rods that go down from cab to the valves - the instructions tell you to cut through a rubber gasket in specific spots. I found a great way to do that is to tape a razor blade to the end of the rod, align it with the bracket in the cab and then lower it down to the gasket and cut exactly where it should go.
Another tip I can offer is when the time comes to attach the bracket to the back of the tractor that holds the remote connectors. You will be removing 4 small hole covers (fancy grey tape squares) on the inside of the cab. Then you have a plate you need to hold on the inside of the cab that has welded nuts on there and you will then be bolting in from the outside. Sounds like a logistical issue for sure unless you are Mr. Fantastic... or if you have a helper... BUT - to do it solo - just put a piece of tape on the plate and align the holes in the cab... then when you go behind the cab, you can just thread the bolt through. Simple.
Not mentioned in the instructions but the upper bracket you install in the cab that has the actual levers you move - it has this weird bent metal bottom and 2 holes in it... no explanation of why or what for... Look at the wiring harness right there - there are 2 unused push type retainer clips - you plug them into those holes and it ensures the wiring harness will not bind up in the new levers and rods you are installing. Pretty freaking slick.
Overall - this kit is probably "easier" to install than the 3rd function kit - but it's a more complicated installation - if that makes sense. There's just more "stuff" to mess with where as the 3rd function kit is just new hoses and plugging in some wires for the most part. Not having to remove the wheel, however, should make this much more approachable for folks to do on their own.
As for rear cylinders for a top-n-tilt... I'll share the setup and part numbers I used in another post. I saved a LOT of money of the ridiculously over priced Kubota kit and got better "stuff" I think.
First - the 2 wholegoods part numbers you need for the valve control hardware are:
- L8396 - that's for position 1 valve (so if you are doing only one rear, then you only need this kit and a valve)
- L8393 - that's for the 2nd position valve, you buy this IN ADDITION to or once you have position 1... they stack on each other)
- L8308 - this is the basic double acting valve - meaning - you push the lever one way the cylinder will go one direction, at rest the lever will not make the valve do anything and pull it and the cylinder goes the other direction.
- L8309 - this is a double acting valve with float detent. This means it works mostly like the above valve but if you push the lever all the way forward, just like float on a loader it will pop into a detent and and continue to run fluid until there's enough back pressure to pop out of the detent. Point of something like this - provide continuous flow to something that runs off continuous flow.
Perhaps the biggest obstacle to doing this you will hear is that you MUST remove the rear wheel to access a panel in the wheel well to get things connected. If your are flexible - you 100% DO NOT need to remove the rear wheel (which in my case is rim guarded - so at around 800# I wasn't really looking forward to that). You can get everything installed and tightened with the rear wheel on - just make your life easy and DO NOT have a rear implement on the tractor.
There's a couple of youtube videos out there at the time of this post - they do a fair job explaining how things go together - but the biggest challenge here is that the instructions are NOT step by step - they basically give you a part of the kit and some part numbers and tell you to put them together. You spend a LOT of time flipping between the steps they want you to do and the exploded diagram of the entire kit trying to figure out exactly where things go. It's all correct - but not super clear. So just go slowly.
When you are placing the o-rings in the valves and the manifold - use some grease to hold them in there. Doing this will prevent them from popping out at inopportune times.
There's also a few missed things in the diagram as well - so use common sense as you do this. For example there's a big bracket in the kit for the first valve. The instructions show one bolt holding it to the tractor and one bolt attaching the bracket to the manifold for the valves... but - the kit comes with 2 bolts for the attachment to the tractor and there are 2 holes, same for the manifold. Just put all the bolts in all the holes where it makes sense.
For me the biggest win in terms of not needing to take the wheel off was installing the manifold that brings the hydro to the valves - I worked it over and under the 2 hoses I have for the Kubota 3rd function kit from inside the cab under the seat. I did have to loosen on of the 3rd function hoses a little bit to move the hose slightly so things fit. If you don't have a 3rd function, that won't be an issue. If you are ALSO installing a Kubota 3rd function - it's not a bad idea to do this right after to you can move the hose. Once I got that positioned (being sure to no knock out an o-ring) - then I went back around behind the tractor and took the valve bodies with the lever arms that attach directly to them on the long bolts in kit 2 - and attached to the manifold. This was very tight work but very doable.
The hardest part of the entire install is when the connector rods come down from the cab to the lever on top of the valve - you need to insert a very small cotter pin / R-clip in there... you will need nimble fingers and not sausage hands if you leave the wheel on. Just take your time.
Regarding the connector rods that go down from cab to the valves - the instructions tell you to cut through a rubber gasket in specific spots. I found a great way to do that is to tape a razor blade to the end of the rod, align it with the bracket in the cab and then lower it down to the gasket and cut exactly where it should go.
Another tip I can offer is when the time comes to attach the bracket to the back of the tractor that holds the remote connectors. You will be removing 4 small hole covers (fancy grey tape squares) on the inside of the cab. Then you have a plate you need to hold on the inside of the cab that has welded nuts on there and you will then be bolting in from the outside. Sounds like a logistical issue for sure unless you are Mr. Fantastic... or if you have a helper... BUT - to do it solo - just put a piece of tape on the plate and align the holes in the cab... then when you go behind the cab, you can just thread the bolt through. Simple.
Not mentioned in the instructions but the upper bracket you install in the cab that has the actual levers you move - it has this weird bent metal bottom and 2 holes in it... no explanation of why or what for... Look at the wiring harness right there - there are 2 unused push type retainer clips - you plug them into those holes and it ensures the wiring harness will not bind up in the new levers and rods you are installing. Pretty freaking slick.
Overall - this kit is probably "easier" to install than the 3rd function kit - but it's a more complicated installation - if that makes sense. There's just more "stuff" to mess with where as the 3rd function kit is just new hoses and plugging in some wires for the most part. Not having to remove the wheel, however, should make this much more approachable for folks to do on their own.
As for rear cylinders for a top-n-tilt... I'll share the setup and part numbers I used in another post. I saved a LOT of money of the ridiculously over priced Kubota kit and got better "stuff" I think.
